Francisco
Meaning of Francisco
Francisco breezes in like a warm Mediterranean wind—sun-kissed, storied, and impossible to ignore. Born from the medieval Latin Franciscus, “Frenchman,” the name traveled west on conquistador ships and missionary sandals, picking up Spanish passion and Portuguese rhythm along the way. It calls to mind St. Francis of Assisi, the gentle saint who talked to birds, and painter Francisco Goya, who splashed the canvas with midnight dreams; more recently, baseball’s Francisco Lindor keeps the moniker dancing under stadium lights. In the United States, Francisco has played the long game, hovering confidently in the Top 300 for over a century—never flashy, always faithful, like a trusty guitar that’s tuned and ready. Pronounced fran-SEES-koh in Spanish and fran-SEEZ-koo in Portuguese, the name rolls off the tongue in a swirl of soft consonants and sunny vowels. For parents seeking a time-tested classic with international swagger and a built-in lullaby of nicknames (think Frank, Franco, or Paco), Francisco feels like destiny wearing a sombrero tilted just so.
Pronunciation
Spanish
- Pronunced as fran-SEES-koh (/fɾanˈsisko/)
Portuguese
- Pronunced as fran-SEEZ-koo (/fɾˈsi.zku/)
U.S. Popularity Chart
States Popularity Chart
Notable People Named Francisco
| Francisco Franco was a Spanish general who led the Nationalists in the Civil War and ruled Spain as dictator from 1939 to 1975, a period known as Francoist Spain. |
| Francisco I Madero was a pro democracy Mexican businessman, writer, and revolutionary who sparked the Mexican Revolution against Porfirio Diaz, became president in 1911, and was overthrown and assassinated in 1913. |
| Francisco de Miranda was a Venezuelan revolutionary and military leader who fought in the American and French revolutions and the Spanish American wars of independence, and is hailed as a precursor of South America’s liberation. |
| Francisco Vázquez de Coronado - Francisco Vazquez de Coronado was a Spanish conquistador who led a 1540 to 1542 expedition from Mexico across the American Southwest into Kansas seeking the Seven Cities of Gold, making the first European sightings of the Grand Canyon and Colorado River. |
| Francisco Goya was a Spanish Romantic painter and printmaker, the foremost Spanish artist of the late 1700s and early 1800s, whose powerful works reflected turbulent times and helped usher in modern art. |
| Francisco Pizarro was a Spanish conquistador who led the conquest of the Inca Empire. |
| Puerto Rican shortstop Francisco Lindor, known as Mr. Smile, is a switch hitting right handed MLB player for the New York Mets who previously played for the Cleveland Indians. |
| Francisco de Quevedo, a Spanish Baroque nobleman, politician, and writer, was a leading poet whose conceptismo contrasted with the culteranismo of his rival Luis de Gongora. |
| Francisco Tárrega - Francisco de Asis Tarrega y Eixea was a Spanish late Romantic composer and classical guitarist best known for Capricho Arabe and Recuerdos de la Alhambra. |
| Francisco de Zurbarán - Francisco de Zurbaran was a Spanish painter famed for religious scenes and still lifes rendered with dramatic chiaroscuro, earning the nickname Spanish Caravaggio. |
| Francisco and Jacinta Marto, siblings from near Fatima, became famed child visionaries after reported apparitions with cousin Lucia dos Santos that inspired the title Our Lady of Fatima and a major Catholic pilgrimage site. |
| Dominican catcher Francisco Peña plays for the Piratas de Campeche and previously appeared in MLB with the Royals, Orioles, and Cardinals, as well as in Taiwan with the CTBC Brothers. |
| Francisco Toledo - Francisco Benjamin Lopez Toledo was a leading Mexican painter, sculptor, and graphic artist whose career spanned seven decades and whose activism championed the culture of Oaxaca. |
| Francisco de Asís, Duke of Cádiz - Francisco de Asis was king consort of Spain from 1846 to 1868 as the husband and double first cousin of Queen Isabella II, and their son Alfonso XII restored the monarchy in 1874. |
| Francisco Mejía - Francisco Jose Mejia is a Dominican catcher in the Washington Nationals organization who previously played MLB for the Cleveland Indians, San Diego Padres, and Tampa Bay Rays. |
